Simon Gruber

Simon Gruber
First appearance	Die Hard with a Vengeance
Last appearance	Die Hard with a Vengeance
Portrayed by	Jeremy Irons
In-universe information
Species	Human
Gender	Male
Family	Hans Gruber

Peter Krieg, portrayed by Jeremy Irons, is a fictional character and the main antagonist in the film Die Hard: With a Vengeance.

At the beginning of Die Hard: With a Vengeance, a bomb explodes in a jewellery store in New York City. While the NYPD are trying to deal with this act of terrorism, a mysterious man calling himself "Simon" phones police Inspector Walter Cobb (Larry Bryggman), claiming responsibility for the bomb. He then tells Cobb that he wants to play a game of "Simon Says" with Lieutenant John McClane, or another bomb will go off. He instructs McClane to go to Harlem wearing a sandwich board that says "I Hate Niggers". The police drop McClane off in Harlem dressed only in the sandwich board and his boxers. Before McClane can be attacked by angry hoodlums, a local store owner Zeus Carver (Samuel L. Jackson) intervenes and rescues him. The two return to the police headquarters. "Simon," annoyed that Carver has interfered with his "well laid plan," sends both Carver and McClane on a wild goose chase around New York City, telling them the location of bombs that will blow up if the two don't reach them and solve Simon's riddles.

"Simon" is eventually revealed to be named Peter Krieg, born Simon Peter Gruber, the elder brother of Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman, who is actually two years older than Jeremy Irons), whom McClane dropped off the 32nd story of the Nakatomi Plaza at the climax of the first Die Hard film. It is stated that before coming after McClane, Simon was a Colonel in the East German Army in command of an infiltration unit. He has singled out McClane because of his involvement in the death of his brother (hence the film's title), and at first it seems revenge is his primary motivation. It later becomes clear, however, that Simon shares his brother's pragmatism; He is not interested in terrorism and actually intends to steal $140 billion worth of gold bullion from the Federal Reserve Bank. The bombs scattered throughout the city merely act as a distraction.

When the gold is stolen, and deposited in dump trucks, Simon's henchmen flee to Canada, while he remains behind with his personal guard. Simon informs the police that the gold is on a ship off Long Island, which he intends to blow up, thus distributing the gold across the seabed. However, the ship contains only scrap metal, while the gold is in the dump trucks heading to Canada. When McClane and Carver make an attack on the boat, they are captured and handcuffed to a pole, with the bomb intended to blow the ship sitting directly next to them. Simon reveals that whilst he hated his brother, he will kill McClane anyway for repeatedly meddling with his plans. He then leaves for Canada with the rest of his henchmen, leaving McClane and Carver to die on the boat.

In Canada, Simon and his henchmen celebrate the successful heist, but are interrupted by the police (including McClane and Carver, who escaped the boat moments before it exploded). Whilst the soldiers leave to battle the police, Simon and his bodyguard Katya (Sam Phillips) set off in a helicopter to kill McClane once and for all. With Katya piloting, Simon shoots McClane's helicopter down with an M60 machine gun. As the pilot lands, McClane runs into the open, knowing that Simon only wants to kill him. Simon aims at McClane but before he can kill him, McClane shoots a fusebox on a power line, sending a live wire into the rotating blades of the helicopter, causing it to crash and killing Simon and Katya in a fireball.

Simon evidently shared his brother's fondness for expensive suits and witty one-liners, however he was noticeably more deranged than Hans.

Quotes

• "Said Simple Simon to the pie man going to the fair: Give me your pies... or I'll cave your head in."
• "Simon says, get to the pay phone next to the news kiosk in Wall Street Station by 10:20, or the number 3 train and its passengers vaporize."
• [Posing as a city worker with a fake southern accent] "Holy Toledo! Somebody had fun."
• [Katya is repeatedly stabbing a guard] "I think he's dead, my dear."
• "I'm a soldier, not a monster, even though I sometimes work for monsters."
• "There's a difference, you know, between not liking one's brother, and not caring when some dumb Irish flatfoot drops him out a window."
• "Yesterday we were an army without a country. Tomorrow, we have to decide which country we want to buy!"
• "And remember, this is all due to the g-g-g-gullibilty of the New York Police Department!"